A top reality agent agrees that the reboots are fear-based. "In order to save their jobs, they're grasping at straws," says the agent, with others noting that the unscripted revivals parallel the influx of scripted TV and movie remakes, all hoping that familiar IP will cut through a cluttered landscape.

But NBC president of alternative Paul Telegdy doesn't believe the reality revivals have anything to do with an apparent lack of new ideas. "This mythology that somehow the search for the next big format is eluding anyone — they come along once in a while," says Telegdy, who revived I'm a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here at NBC six years after its run on ABC. "There's no sudden panic. The reason we're doing Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous is we think it's a very entertaining vehicle for Nick Cannon."